DareAs we step down from the small platform, anticipation ratchets up until it almost feels like a real, tangible thing. Goodbyes are spoken, and we discuss last minute plans with the elders who will be remaining behind. I see Gwen and Sable exchange words, and I bite back a smile when the witch stiffens a little as Sable hugs her.Everyone who’ll be heading out shifts to wolf form and dons their packs with the help of those still in human form. The packs are loaded with weapons, clothes, first aid, supplies, anything we might need if the battle rages longer than a day. We have no intention of returning to pack lands until the coven is decimated.Then we’re on the move.In such a huge group, we can’t exactly be subtle about our approach. So the decision was to screw subtlety and go for speed. Make it to the coven’s stronghold so quickly that we can surround them before they even realize we’re there.Speed is relative, however. We travel for two days, all of us going full tilt and cra

SableMy blood runs cold as Cleo’s words wash over me.I want to deny it, to call her a liar. I want her to be making this up just to get the upper hand.But she’s not.I know it.Where her magic is wrapped around my torso, I can feel it delving deep inside me through the connection we share. And I can feel the truth. My hands automatically go to my belly where the little life seems to glow like a tiny star beneath Cleo’s pulsing, evil magic.Whether I’m in my astral form or not, that little life is still with me. And if Cleo kills me, even in this realm, the baby will die too.My mates hesitate, their wolfish gazes boring into me as if they can see the truth for themselves if they just look hard enough. They can’t, of course. All they see is me in danger, and I know they don’t want to give in. But they must read the answer in my eyes, because as one, they all release Cleo and step away from her.Angry growls echo off the cave walls. I can feel their collective helplessness through ou

RidgeCleo’s blood pulses from her body against my tongue, and it’s a strange sensation. This place is real, but not real, and her blood is an illusion. I know that. But I can taste it, coppery and bitter. I can feel it slippery on my tongue, leaking down my chin as her heartbeats slow. Underneath that, I sense the life leaving her. And it’s all as real as if we were back in the real world.In my peripheral vision, the unfamiliar house fades away, replaced by the dark cave where we were waiting when Sable and Cleo disappeared. Then, with a strange rush, something shatters and power floods the cave. The energy flashes and then peters out, and I realize it’s the connection between Cleo and Sable breaking.The sensation of Cleo’s warm, bloodied skin between my teeth vanishes, and I hurtle through the dark, cold ether with no control over my limbs. It’s so sudden it knocks the wind out of me, like I’m plummeting off a skyscraper on a collision course for the asphalt, but I can’t even scre

SableI bend over the table set up in the middle of the street and point at an empty lot on the outskirts of the blueprints’ dark lines. “Couldn’t we fit another house here? A small family home. There’s plenty of space.”Ridge squints at the plans, then raises his gaze to the row of old East Pack homes. “Yeah, you know, I think we could. Maybe even two. What do you think?” He glances at Archer. “You know this land better than I do. Is it stable?”“It’s stable,” Archer agrees thoughtfully. “Rock and dirt. Maybe not great for growing crops, but good for building. But they’d have to be small houses. Really small.”“I think small houses would be nice for new families,” I offer. “Rather than having to live in the apartments with all the bachelors. Kids deserve a yard to play in, even if it’s tiny.” My hand drifts to my abdomen. Even though the baby isn’t starting to show yet, I’m vividly aware of the little life growing inside me, and how I want to raise our child and provide for it. He or

Sable"This is it. I can feel it." Archer's moss- green eyes gleam with excitement as he raises his eyebrows. "This is the one.""You said that about the last try too," Dare points out, but I can hear the hope in his voice as the five of us watch our little boy pull himself up to a standing position.Ben is nine months old, and he's been on the verge of taking his first steps for days now. We've all been waiting anxiously, eager to see the momentous achievement, and I think Archer is right-I think today's the day."Good job, buddy!" Ridge crouches down a few feet away from our son, holding his arms out as the rest of us add our cheers to the mix. "Come to daddy. Come on."Ben's little face lights up with pure joyas he looks at Ridge. Tristan is stationed right behind Ridge, his hands brace down his knees as he leans down to be closer to the action, and when Ben shifts his gaze from one man to the other, his smile grows even wider. He lets out a stream of happy babble, and both of my